The Elements
description For a document that organizes the building blocks of everything in the universe, the periodic table is awfully dull. Enter science writer Theodore Gray. He spent years collecting and photographing samples of elements from aluminum to zinc, and his book The Elements is a loving reimagination of the classic table, detailing not only atomic weight and structure but also how each substance is used. Where would we be without brittle, iridescent bismuth, the active ingredient in Pepto-Bismol? 
Future Perfect Radio
description Music programming isn’t rocket science, but sometimes it’s wise to leave the task to the pros. This Chicago-based Web radio station offers more than 25 curated channels, letting you dive into a plethora of cleverly monikered genres like Au Naturale and Flux and explore music scenes around the world. Bonus: no registration required. 
Piperoids
description Sure, you could build your own robot out of sheet metal and circuit boards, but that’s a chore—and the result could enslave you. Grab this $15 Japanese kit and you can make one out of paper in half an hour. Each Piperoid comes as a set of colorful tubes with holes and marks that make assembly a snap. Simply cut and slide the pieces together—no glue, tape, or PhD required. Photo: Todd Tankersley 
Star Wars: In Concert
description You’ve seen the movies, played the videogames, and wielded the lightsaber. What’s next? A live Star Wars symphony! With Anthony Daniels (aka C-3PO) narrating, a full orchestra will perform John Williams’ glorious music, accompanying scenes from the films on a giant hi-def screen. The world tour starts October 1. 
At 14, armed with only a library book and mad DIY skills, William Kamkwamba built a windmill out of a discarded tractor fan and a broken bicycle. He used it to pump 12 volts of electricity—enough to power a lightbulb—into his Malawi home for the first time. Many inventions later, the TEDGlobal fellow recounts the story in this touching memoir.
I Love Alaska
description Every day we type in search queries without considering what they say about us. But what if our searches were not only made public but turned into a movie? You’d get I Love Alaska, a series of videos by Lernert Engelberts and Sander Plug that use the accidentally leaked queries of a real AOL user to tell the tale of a cheating wife who is dumped by her cyberlover (tinyurl.com/czbm2n). As the camera pans over frozen landscapes, a voice reads her revealing keywords. It’ll make you think twice before you Google. 
Former Talking Heads frontman David Byrne chronicles the ups and downs of his decades pushing pedals in NYC and abroad. Part travelogue, part cultural critique, the book takes us from Berlin to Buenos Aires, delivering historical ephemera and witty ruminations on everything from Jane Jacobs to padded spandex. Photo: Todomundo
Bradford Cox, the songwriter behind psych-noise quartet Deerhunter, ditched an album’s worth of material after it leaked online. Fortunately for us, Cox later reconsidered and revisited the tracks. The resulting set of dreamy pop tunes, featuring members of Animal Collective and Stereolab, is worth the wait.
Mystery Team
description Derrick Comedy, a sketch troop whose YouTube videos of witty nincompoopery boast 75 million views, has taken its antics to the big screen. In Mystery Team, a trio of artless teens fancy themselves detectives and bumble along on the trail of a murderer. Hilariously, one "disguise" consists of top hats and monocles. 
Tengu
description Feeling stressed at work? Let Tengu reboot your mood. Created by designer Crispin Jones, this USB-powered device sits on your desk and lights up with goofy faces that lip-sync to music—or a harangue from your boss. The original model looked like an innocent peripheral when asleep; this incarnation features gaudy afros and glammed-up attitude.
